ASTANA. July 28 (Interfax) - Kazakhstan and Russia plan to postpone the start of flight tests at the joint Baiterek space rocket center using a medium-lift launch vehicle from 2023 to 2025, as follows from the Kazakh government's draft directive published on the website of the Digital Development, Innovation, and Aerospace Industry Ministry.
"The complicated global geopolitical situation has disrupted logistical chains for supplies of components and materials, which has lengthened operations. In view of this, a protocol will be signed to postpone the start of the Baiterek space rocket center's flight tests with a medium-lift launch vehicle and all operations as part of the project until 2025," an explanatory note to the draft directive says.
A draft protocol on amending the intergovernmental agreement between Kazakhstan and Russia on setting up the Baiterek space rocket center at Baikonur Cosmodrome dated December 22, 2004, stipulates that "the parties ensure the start of flight tests at the Baiterek space rocket center with a medium-lift launch vehicle in 2025." The current version of the document says that such flight tests will be conducted in 2023.
The new version of the document also envisions "at least three test launches of a Soyuz-5 launch vehicle from the Baiterek space rocket center before 2027," rather than before 2025.
In addition, the new draft protocol envisions "the placement of orders on putting spacecraft into orbit from the Baiterek space rocket center using a Soyuz-5 launch vehicle and its possible versions at the level of at least two launches a year between 2028 and 2039." The current document says that such orders could be placed between 2025 and 2036.
The parties agreed to draw up the draft protocol at a meeting concerning the Baiterek project's implementation between Kazakh Digital Development, Innovations, and Aerospace Industry Minister Bagdat Musin and Roscosmos CEO Yury Borisov.
Baiterek is a Russian-Kazakh space rocket center at Baikonur Cosmodrome which Soyuz-5 launch vehicles will be launched from.